Stick With Me Now, My Story Gets Better
by NobodysAngel80
Summary: Four years since Aizen's defeat and Soul Society, Hueco Mundo and the Living World have moved on.  But not every story is finished yet.  Continuation of "Stand", "Ice and Steel" and "Onward"  Main pairings ByakuyaOC, IchigoOC, MomoOC, RenjiRukia, etc.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: Tada! First chapter of the actual story, which Stand, Ice and Steel and Onward were leading up to! I've taken a few liberties with the story following the whole "Ichigo loses his powers" situation, as I mentioned in "Onward", and so I'm hoping that my readers will just go with me on some of the plot points. I promise, there's a good story to be had! Furthermore, I want to give a good bit of the credit for this to my beloved boyfriend, as any of the male OC's that you read about in this story were made up by him, and thus I owe him greatly for that, and for the inspiration for this story. As always, anything you recognize belongs to Tite Kubo, and I'm just having a bit of fun with his creations. And without further ado, on to the story!

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><p>The imprisonment of Aizen, along with the death of most of the Espada, had left a power vacuum in Hueco Mundo. That vacuum gave rise to a new regime, and no one had been more surprised than Unohana Retsu when she had been instructed to travel to Las Noches on an ambassadorial mission. She and her lieutenant had not really known how to react to being formally invited to the place that only a few scant years ago had been their mortal enemies. Of course, the reason that they'd had such a problem with Hueco Mundo was currently locked away in a cell in the god-forsaken depths of Muken, but even still, to be sent an invitation to attend the court of Drake Typhon, the new king of Hueco Mundo was certainly something that was fairly high on Unohana's list of "things unlikely to ever happen", situated somewhere between Kuchiki Byakuya posing willingly for the Shinigami Women's Association photo book, and Madarame Ikkaku deciding to lay down his weapons and become a Buddhist monk.<p>

Nothing had been heard from the desolate moonlit desert that was home to so many lost spirits in at least three years, and so it was a most curious time to be suddenly inviting a pair of shinigami to come visit. Several of the captains had expressed concern over this, but in the end, given how the Winter War had crippled Soul Society's fighting force, Central 46 had agreed to at least meet with the new king. Unohana and her lieutenant were chosen, because of all the captains, Unohana was the one with the best mixture of power and diplomacy. Little had she suspected that the treaty with Hueco Mundo would rely on other skills than diplomacy.

Opening a garganta required speaking with Kurotsuchi-taicho, which was certainly not one of her favorite things to do, considering just how creepy the man was, and how often he liked to ask far too dear of payments for his services rendered. However, it was on the Soutaicho's orders this time, and so there was little he could do aside from skulking around creepily and berate his lieutenant, causing Unohana to wonder, not for the first time, why anyone actually put up with him. Then the garganta opened, and she had to admit that the man, while utterly without morals, compassion or a sense of restraint, was brilliant nonetheless. Times like these, she really missed Urahara Kisuke. He at least didn't go for the whole facepaint look. Some days she wasn't sure whether to hate Kurotsuchi-taicho with a passion, or ask him to make a balloon giraffe for her. It was an odd dichotomy there, to be sure.

When she and Isane had stepped out of the garganta, they had been standing inside of the throne room of Las Noches. Seated at the table were several people, only one of which was familiar to Unohana. It had been a bit surprising to see Grimmjow Jaegerjacque alive, much less seated in the spot of Primera. However, the eye was instantly drawn to the man that stood, walking towards Unohana and Isane with a purposeful stride. He was taller than either woman, a surprise to the white haired vice-captain, who was used to being on par with, or taller, than most people that she met, with crimson red hair that lightened to gold at the tips, in long, swept back spikes from his head and back over the back of his neck, resembling a Western dragon's bony neckfrill. He was handsome in a feral sort of way, powerfully built and yet sacrificing no grace of movement, with fine, strong features, reminding one rather of the statues of ancient Roman emperors, with a long, aquiline nose, a sharply defined jaw and deepset, flame red eyes. The sheer power that he exuded made it easy to see why he was the new king of Hueco Mundo.

He came to them, first to Unohana, then to Isane, taking their hands and bowing over it politely, an odd thing for an arrancar to do. "Welcome to Las Noches. I imagine it is a bit different than the last time this place had shinigami visitors." He said, his voice deep and rumbling, as if it came from some place deep in his chest. "I am Typhon Drake, King of Hueco Mundo. You do us a great honor by coming today." Even Grimmjow didn't sneer at this; instead he looked oddly…anticipatory. That put Unohana a bit on edge, but she smiled serenely and inclined her head to the tall man.

"Your invitation was most kind, and most unexpected, Typhon-sama. There has never been a king of Hueco Mundo who wished anything but quiet hostility with Soul Society. While it is very heartening, it is also very unusual. Please, forgive my impertinence, but what caused this change in sentiment towards shinigami?" She was reservedly polite, unfailingly so, but the oddity of an offer of ceased hostility was, needless to say, an extraordinary situation, and she wanted to make sure that there was no hint of betrayal in this offer. The king himself smiled, a broad, toothy sort of grin, and there was a murmured sense of amusement that rippled around the table. The Fourth Division captain felt as though there was a joke at her expense going on, but it wasn't overt enough to call attention to just yet. The flame haired king simply turned and motioned to a pair of chairs near his seat at the head of the table.

"Please sit. I will answer all the questions you wish, of course. But I would be most remiss in my duties as a host if I were to keep you here without offering you the simple courtesy of a seat." Unohana and Isane allowed themselves to be seated and turned their attention to the king, though keeping a close watch on the other arrancar. There were so many of Espada level; had Aizen created so many before his fall? The king himself remained standing, and began to pace as he spoke. "You must understand the situation of Hueco Mundo after the traitor took the king's throne." He refused to even speak Aizen's name, and indeed it was very similar to a curse now, an epitaph rarely flung except in times of great fury. "I was outcast even before that, during the reign of Baraggan. I was a threat to the throne even then, if not for his little aging trick." He spoke dismissively of the former Segunda Espada's powers. "The traitor had the same situation; a cheap trick that he could use to win a battle with no effort or danger put forth. I have no such tricks. What I do have, is power. And in Hueco Mundo, power is the deciding factor in the chain of command. Of the arrancar that remain, and the ones that I have awakened, I am the strongest. And thus, I am king."

Unohana sat up slightly in her seat at the mention of him awakening arrancar, sharing a quick glance with Isane, who had a similarly alarmed look on her face. "You…say that you awakened arrancar, Typhon-sama? How is that possible?" The king smiled a little and nodded towards a pedestal beside his throne. It looked very familiar, and when he placed his hand on it, the sections slid away to reveal a glittering gem suspended inside of a glass case. Once the pedestal was opened, Unohana felt the familiar pulse of the Hogyoku… but it was different somehow. She looked up at him, her eyes having widened fractionally. "There was no second Hogyoku. The two were combined and formed one entity, and that is merged with Aizen still."

Drake looked at the softly glowing stone and smiled a bit. "You are correct in most of those statements, Unohana-taicho. However, what you are missing is the nature of how the two Hogyoku combined. You're assuming that their entire forms merged to create one singular entity, when that is not exactly the case. Yes, the essence of the two incomplete Hogyoku formed together, creating the one that the traitor currently has in his chest, which extends his miserable life far beyond that which he deserves. However, the physical empty husk of the second one was left, and… it seemed to resonate with me, with my desire to see Hueco Mundo restored to its glory. It wasn't until recently that it regained the power it once had. Nowhere near as powerful as the traitor's, but it serves the purpose I wish. Namely, to grant awakened sentience to powerful Hollows, to allow them to be more easily commanded, and to reduce the incursions of beings into the world of the living or into Soul Society that an ordinary force of shinigami could not handle." He turned his gaze to Unohana and Isane. "And for that, a peace with Soul Society is necessary."

He motioned to his Espada seated around the table, and Unohana turned to survey the assembled group. They didn't have the malicious demeanor of so many of the arrancar that they had faced during the Winter War. There was power there, a good bit of it, and a certain sense of arrogance, but there was no veiled ill intent towards her or her subordinate. It was a curious deviation from what she had come to expect from arrancar and gave a great deal of credibility to this idea of a peace between the two worlds. "If you are truly intending to keep all but the lowest, most uncontrollable Hollows from attacking the souls of the Living World and Rukongai, then of course Soul Society is pleased to extend the hand of peace." It seemed a strange reason to bring an ambassador so far for such a simple plan. There had to be more to it than that when the king smiled, a distinctly masculine expression, and she felt his eyes rake down her body in a very…appraising…manner. A quick glance at Isane showed that she had felt the same stare, not only from the king but from the other male arrancar seated about the table.

"You see, there is a small matter of…incentive, Unohana-taicho. You see, if my arrancar do not go to the world of the living and to Rukongai to feed, then they have to feed on the lesser Hollows here, and while they are sustenance, they aren't particularly satisfying." The captain felt herself tensing a bit. Were they going to start asking for tribute in the form of shinigami souls to feed on? The idea made her vaguely nauseous. However, when he actually spoke again, she felt her stomach twist, but for a different reason. "Hollows are beings of instinct, you understand. And there are several instincts that rule them; the instinct to fight, to feed…and of course, the most primal instinct, to mate. However, as you can see, there is a severe lack of female arrancar to alleviate those…tensions." His smile took on a slightly more carnal tilt. "And that is where Soul Society's side of the bargain comes in." He waited to see if Unohana would speak up, but judging from her face, there was nothing that the normally unflappable captain could say. He continued. "Willing women only, of course. And naturally I would prefer that they be accompanied by yourself and your lieutenant, as you are both proficient healers and highly respected. The women that elect to come have nothing to fear if you should agree to these terms, as I have been quite blunt with my subordinates in what will happen should any of the women that come to us in such a manner were to come to any harm. Death would be the best that they could hope for."

Unohana was in shock. She didn't really know how to respond to such a thing. The idea…the idea was certainly not a bad one, particularly if the women were willing and the men were careful. And if it ensured a peace between Hueco Mundo and Soul Society, and thinned out the numbers of Hollows roaming the Living World, it was certainly worth consideration. She didn't let her face betray any of this though, and smiled serenely at the king. "I will certainly offer your proposal to the Soutaicho and Central 46. If they agree to the terms, then we will set up a trial period to see if this arrangement is amenable to everyone." She stood, beckoning her red-faced lieutenant to stand as well. However, a large hand on each of their shoulders gave them pause as quiet, rumbling voice of the king let them know that the meeting wasn't exactly over just yet.

"I should certainly not wish to send you back to Soul Society without being able to attest to our hospitality personally. It is entirely your choice, but you would be able to give a much more fair assessment of the situation, were you to know what the women coming would face." His breath was warm on the older captain's neck, and in spite of herself she shivered. Normally she would have very politely and firmly shut such a suggestion down. However, circumstances were very different this time. This was for the good of everyone…and though she didn't admit it, the idea was not repugnant in the least. In fact, it was quite enticing, were she to be completely honest with herself. A quick glance at Isane's blushing face and bitten lip made her certain that the young woman would prefer to be left out of such arrangements though.

"That is a very fair assessment of the situation, Typhon-sama. It would be very reckless of me to make a recommendation for or against something with no knowledge of what will be faced by the young women coming here. And so, I will accept your offer." She turned towards the king, glancing at Isane. "I am sure that the king can arrange a comfortable place for you to wait while we conduct our business." She said, and Drake couldn't help but hide a small smile at how very properly she was approaching this. However, he was rather surprised when the tall young white haired woman, who up until now hadn't said two words the entire conversation shot up from her seat, her hands folded in front of her. Her voice was a little shaky, and it seemed that all the blood in her body had migrated to her face, but she had a determined expression on her face.

"No, I will…stay with you, taicho. I wouldn't w-want you to have to do this alone. B-besides, if we b-both speak well of…of…" she trailed off a moment, not sure how to word what she was agreeing to, before firming her chin and soldiering on. "then it will lend more validity to our recommendations, either for or against." Privately Drake couldn't help but smile inwardly at how adorably out of her element the young fukutaicho appeared to be, but she did have a point. A goodly number of the women who would be coming here if all went well weren't going to be of captain level. If Isane could give her recommendation, it would go a long way towards allaying the fears of the less powerful women. Besides, the idea was quite…stimulating. He grinned toothily, stepping back and bowing slightly to the two women, motioning to the hallway leading out of the throne room and into the deeper halls of Las Noches.

"Well then, ladies…I am sure that between myself and my subordinates, we can give you a very good taste of what delights await the brave young women who may choose to act as…goodwill ambassadors of a sort." At his nod, several of the top Espada stood and bowed politely to the two women, though the positively roguish grins that accompanied the bows left Unohana and her lieutenant with no questions that politeness was about to get thrown right out the window.

And she had worn her good shihakusho today and everything…

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><p>Hope that you enjoyed the intro, and if you're so inclined, I do love getting reviews about what works, what doesn't work and how I can improve. Now, there would have been a lemon included there, but I figured that would be best left to the imagination. However, if you the readers want me to include it, let me know in the comments section. Thanks for reading!<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: Hello everyone! Next chapter up, sorry about it being a bit later than I was planning, I was sick for a few days and writing was definitely not high on the list of things to do when afflicted with the stomach flu. However I am now back, and for your viewing pleasure, the next chapter in my own weird little world. As always, everything you recognize belongs to Tite Kubo, and I just play with his pretty creations. Hope you enjoy! Please feel free to review and comment. I crave suggestions to make my writing better and love hearing what I'm doing right and not so right.

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><p>Kimonos <em>itched<em>.

This wasn't normally a conclusion that Shineiki Kietsu would have normally found herself coming to, since she didn't wear kimonos as a general rule. In fact, until this point in time the closest she had ever come to a kimono was when her parents made her wear a yukata for festival times in the district. She'd never had a reason to wear a yukata since entering the Academy and didn't even own one of her own anymore, having outgrown them when she hit that last growth spurt and shot up to just a little shy of six feet. Even still, she had a vaguely coltish look to her, all arms and legs and messy brown hair. She was exactly the sort that would look utterly out of place in a kimono. It didn't dissuade her newly introduced clan from trying to stuff her into one, but she at least had the satisfaction of knowing that she was right.

Kietsu, or Kiki as she preferred to be called (but noooo, try telling those nobles anything!) had certainly not known that instead of drilling the new recruits in sword forms or even kido, she'd be spending her day having someone poke at her face and hair, trying to pluck at her eyebrows and she swore they were trying to wash her freckles right off of her nose. Of course, that was before she had received a letter from a very official looking person asking her to come to the Nayumichi estate that morning. Komamura-taicho had been very understanding, though she imagined that he was just as confused as she was. Noble houses didn't typically have an interest in the rank and file shinigami, and even as a fourth seat, she wasn't high enough on the totem pole to really warrant anyone paying any attention to her. It wasn't like she was a genius or anything, she wasn't a captain, and she was just a commoner from Western Rukongai. However, when she arrived to the Nayumichi manor, she discovered that all that wasn't _entirely_ accurate.

The Nayumichi clan was a lesser noble clan, but like all noble houses, they were always seeking ways to rise in status. There were only certain ways for a house to rise in rank. Conquering and wiping out another house was extremely frowned upon in these more civilized times; that was a barbaric custom from back in the day. They could attempt to curry favor with the Soul King but that could take thousands of years to come to fruition, and that was assuming that anything at all came of it. There was a third way of course, and Kiki was looking for the door as soon as they started to speak about it. Ohh, they had been very nice and polite, a little stiff for her tastes up until that point, but they were nobles so she didn't pay it much mind. She had manners; they might not be the best, but she could at least appear civilized. Well, up until the point that they explained why she was there and outlined their master plan for her.

It had never occurred to Kiki that her parents might have had a life before her. Ohh, she knew on a fundamental level that her parents were people with their own lives and everything that didn't include her, but they'd never talked about it, and she had never really thought to ask. To be told that her father was a noble who had abdicated his place in the clan to marry her mother, a soul from Rukongai who had been a maid on the family estate, had been enough of a shock. It didn't make any sense to her. Her father wasn't at all what someone would have thought of when they imagined a noble. And her mother…if she had ever pegged one of them for being secret nobility, it'd have been her mother. Graceful and beautiful, she carried herself with a regal sort of bearing even when doing the simplest tasks. Her father was a carpenter, and one of the district elders, and her mother owned a restaurant. How…how could they have hidden something like that? She was still in shell shock when they went on to explain why they had sent for her.

She had known that she should have run as soon as they mentioned that they were working towards an alliance with one of the high noble houses. The heiress of the clan was supposed to be meeting with a clan leader to see if they would suit well and if his family would accept her into their clan. However, it seemed that there was one in every generation, and the daughter who was supposed to be doing her duty by the clan had found herself in a most compromised position with another man, and thus was…unsuitable for the task. Kiki wasn't sure why this was any use to her, she wasn't political savvy in the least and the ever shifting ranks of power in the noble houses hadn't ever interested her. It wasn't until they started throwing around words like "marriage" and "producing heirs" that she started to get an idea of what they wanted. Apparently, she was the only other woman in the clan of an age to fulfill any sort of marital obligations. And looking around, she noticed…yeah. She was the only female that she had seen that was older than a preteen and younger than a grandmother. At least, the only single one, they had explained. It had taken months of careful negotiations to arrange a meeting between the heiress and the clan leader, and to not have a daughter to present them, well…that was a quick way to fall from grace. A VERY quick way.

It was a no-brainer. She was just about to thank them for the tea and the little cakes with the seeds on them (which she was sure were firmly lodged between her teeth at this point!) and beat a hasty retreat...when they sweetened the deal. Her father would have his position in the clan restored. Her mother would be accepted and welcomed as a noble lady. They could return to live in the clan manor if they wished. All she had to do was just meet with the clan leader. It was too good of a deal. She didn't know how happy her parents would be about something like that, but…there were times when she could remember her mother looking at her father sadly, times when her father would simply hold her mother and pet her hair and say it was alright, that it was worth it. Times that she would watch her father hold an old medallion with a wistful expression, and when she asked about it, he said it was nothing, and distract her with a new joke or idea for a prank. But now it all made sense.

They had said all she had to do was show up; that they would handle the rest. She wouldn't actually have to marry anyone, they wouldn't force her into that, but it would save much more face to have a daughter to present and be refused than to have no daughter at all and have to explain what had happened. She supposed she could see the reason behind that. And so she found herself subjected to the tortures of face painting and hair pinning and nails being filed and scrubbed and lotioned. They had tried to pluck her brows even and brandished some odd metal wand at her eyelashes like they were going to try and rip them out, but she drew the line at that. After all, it was just a simple matter of going there, meeting whatever noble it was that they were talking about, be polite for a few minutes, and then she could wash the gunk off her face, go back to her uniform and her duty as far as her clan was done. Easy peasy.

At least, it would have been if the clan head head was anyone other than Kuchiki Byakuya. Yeah. That would have been nice to know.

When they had dropped THAT little bombshell on her, they had been nearly to the gates of the Kuchiki estate. They'd had to grab her by the obi and hold her in place because the idea of showing up and having to make small talk with the stoic, quiet captain of the 6th division was enough to give Kiki a serious case of the heebie jeebies. She'd tried to bolt, but unfortunately for her, a couple of her clan elders had apparently been working out because all she managed to do was nearly trip in her sandals. She hadn't ever met the man before, though she had seen him in passing a few times, and that was more than enough. The man practically oozed "noble" from his pores – if he even had them, that is. He was…well, everything that she had always prayed never to be stuck in a room with for a long time, and so meeting him to talk about… ohh sweet Soul King, they were gonna try and marry her to Kuchiki-taicho! Kiki wasn't much for fainting, but that was just about all it would take to do it for a girl. She felt decidedly more like she was going to the gallows than to a meeting with a possible husband (and she had a very hard time not laughing hysterically at that idea). However, she might have felt a bit better had she known that at that moment, Kuchiki Byakuya was feeling rather the same way.

They had said it was for the good of the clan. Wasn't everything he did? He was feeling rather snarky about the whole situation, which he supposed he was entitled to. He didn't want to remarry, and he certainly didn't want to have to deal with any more noble women being paraded in front of him like the dog and pony show from Hell. Beautiful young ladies, dressed very nicely, with demure, polite voices and elegant manners. And somehow, not a one of them could compare to the commoner that he had loved and lost. It was bad enough that the elders had practically advertised across Seireitei that they were looking to find a nobly born woman to become his wife. It was bad enough that they had actually convinced him to at least put up with the first few times. He had hoped that once he turned down every single daughter of the high noble houses, they would leave him alone. No such fortune there; they just started going to the lower noble houses. He was so sick of seeing women in kimonos batting their eyelashes at him that he swore he wasn't going to be held responsible for his actions if this kept up.

The clan elders had tried to make him see the need for this, but he refused to even entertain the notion. He had agreed to meet with the women, but he had no intention of actually choosing to marry one of them. There had to be some way out of this. He could pretend that he preferred… he gave an inward shudder at the thought. No. It didn't matter how desperate he got, he wasn't claiming to be gay. Besides, the uproar that would cause would only be amusing for a few days before he started having to deal with men trying to appeal to him and women trying to "change his mind". No, that would just compound his problems.

There was another one coming today, and before he stepped through the doors to the courtyard where they were supposed to meet, he paused to look at the portrait of Hisana to fortify himself. He sighed inwardly, maintaining a calmly aloof expression and made his way to the small contingent of Clan Nayumichi, the woman that he was supposed to meet in the center. She was taller than most of the women he had met, and she stood a bit awkwardly, as if she was wearing something uncomfortable. The heavy makeup, the overly adorned hair, the white silk kimono adorned with cherry tree branches (oh they were really trying, weren't they?), he had seen it all a hundred times before. Still, etiquette had to be observed. He made his way to her, inclining his head and waiting for her to extend her hand. He had done this dance so many times, he swore he could do it in his sleep. However, it seemed that she had not, because she immediately bowed to him, which took him aback a moment. She didn't even bow like a noble woman. She bowed like he had just given her an errand to run and she was about to shunpo away to do it. Shaking himself mentally, he reached out and took her hand smoothly, since apparently the woman wasn't going to do it for him. Odd…her hand felt callused, striped with the toughened skin that showed much time holding a sword. He didn't recognize the clan name from any current shinigami though, so that was a bit of an oddity. "Nayumichi-san, it is an honor to meet so lovely a woman. You do your family much credit." He hoped he didn't sound as bored as he felt. Then…she did something unusual.

She grinned.

"Ne, Kuchiki-taicho! It's very nice to be here, thanks!" Her grin turned into a wince as one of the Nayumichi elders seemed to poke her in the back with something sharp. Her face fell slightly and she continued, as if she were trying to recite something she had memorized. "It is an honor to meet you, Kuchiki-sama. You do my clan a great kindness in your consideration of an alliance." Perhaps more interesting than her words was the way her eyes looked up as if she were trying very hard to make sure she had said it all. It reminded him vaguely of watching students in the academy try to make sure that they listed off all of the names of the pressure points of the body in the medical class. With every word, he found himself wondering if the woman had ever even seen the inside of a clan mansion. Perhaps the elders realized that he was beginning to wonder that, because they bowed and smiled, perhaps a bit too widely.

"We will give the two of you time to become acquainted. If you will excuse us, Kuchiki-sama, Nayumichi-sama..." They were leaving! The rat bastards! He swore he could feel the vein in his forehead begin to twitch, but he'd never show that. What looked to be the most unusual part was that the girl herself looked as though she wanted to go with them. In fact, she looked remarkably dismayed when the doors closed, leaving her alone in the courtyard with him. He felt more than a little miffed. He was Kuchiki Byakuya; whether he liked it or not, he was considered Seireitei's most eligible bachelor by whoever it was that determined things like that. Was she as unwilling to be married as he was? He felt a brief pang of sympathy for her if that were the case. He opened his mouth to try and allay her fears, to reassure her that he had no intention of accepting any marriage proposal from anyone, when she surprised him yet again.

"I hope they don't do this to you often, Kuchiki-taicho. Springing some tarted up chick in a kimono and makeup on you and ask you if you're gonna marry her? Seems like an awful lot of trouble to put someone through." She looked back at him sympathetically. She looked as though she felt sorry for _him_! He would have been affronted by it, but…she acted as though she never had any suspicion in her mind that he would have even offered for her. That confused him more than anything. No matter how willing or reluctant the women that he met were about the prospect of marrying him, none of them ever seemed to just assume outright that he was going to refuse them. In fact, most were downright insulted.

He took a closer look at her face, his brow furrowing a little. There was something slightly familiar about her. Maybe it was the way that her eyebrow quirked, the left one slightly higher than the right, as if she was in on some joke that she hadn't yet told everyone else about. Maybe it had been that grin that had seemed to take up half her face even in the make-up. Had he met her before? He would have thought that he'd remember her, he normally had such a good memory for faces. However, before he could get a better look at her face and try to see past the makeup, she turned, wandering around the courtyard, looking up at the cherry trees admiringly, crouching down to inspect some of the different flowers. He cleared his throat a little to get her attention. "Nayumichi-san…" He began, hoping to at least figure out the situation. The girl didn't respond. He wondered if she was deliberately ignoring him. The throb intensified. "Nayumichi-san." Was the woman deaf? She stood up and slid her hand over the tree trunk, turning and glancing back at him, grinning sheepishly.

"Sorry. Not used to that yet. My name's not Nayumichi. It's Shineiki. Shineiki Kiki. I'm the fourth seat of Seventh Division. That's the clan name though, so I guess it could be confusing." She brushed her hands off on the back of her kimono and he was struck dumb at exactly how little like a noble she behaved. "So…how long do we have to wait before you can say 'Thanks, but no thanks?' I've got to get back to the division office soon. I've got a mountain of paperwork, and if I wait, Komamura-taicho tries to do it, and lemme tell ya, he takes the notion of dog-eared pages to a whole new level." She grinned affectionately at the mention of her captain, stretching a little. He just watched her a moment, almost in disbelief. He had seen her! She was that girl with the half a mile long braid always running around between divisions with stacks of paperwork, grinning like a Cheshire cat! The one that always let her kosode hang open with a tanktop under it, the one who wore her pants tucked into boots, and refusing to wear sandals. He had even mentioned to Komamura-taicho once that her lack of adherence to the dress code was a disgrace, and the tall, wolf-headed captain simply shrugged, commenting that he was the last person who should try to admonish someone based on their appearance, that she was a hard worker, a loyal subordinate and a kind person, so it didn't matter how she chose to wear her uniform, she wore it with pride. He had never mentioned it again to Komamura-taicho, supposing that it was good she was in a division that accepted her.

Now however, she was here in his home. She was dressed as a noble, and looked ridiculously miserable to be dressed in such a way. She was utterly unsuitable, and from the sound of it, barely even qualified to be counted as a noble, having had none of the upbringing, training or refinement for it. The elders couldn't have taken that into consideration when they had agreed to present her to him. "Have you ever had any sort of training in how to behave as a noble lady?" He asked bluntly, and was rewarded with a blank look and a shrug.

"I didn't even find out I was a noble til this morning, so I guess all that noble etiquette and proper behavior didn't really have a chance to stick yet. They shoved as much into my head as they could and told me not to worry about it, that I wasn't really going to have to get married or anything like that." She picked at the sleeve of her kimono and sighed a little. "Seems an awful lot of trouble to me, at least." She turned to face him, smiling brightly. "You don't want to be here, I don't want to be here... so why are we still here?"

She was perhaps the most unusual woman he had ever met. If anyone else had said what she had just said it would have seemed incredibly rude. But she was just so damned cheerful when she said it that it was impossible to take it as an insult. He schooled his features back to normal, not letting anything other than surprise at her very odd manner show. "Because the other gentleman outside will not believe we have taken enough time to speak if we separate now.. and you will end up brought back here in the future." He sure knew that was the truth, and a mistake he wasn't going to make again. The first couple women they brought before him had outright annoyed him with their pathetic attempts at seduction. As if he would have chosen them simply because they acted like harlots the instant they met him. The elders actually had the gall to bring them back before him later, adamantly refusing to let him dismiss them. Apparently when a woman throws herself at a complete stranger and said stranger throws her out of his home, it's an insufficient time to get to know the woman. He knew damned well enough to make his decision.

"Oh. Hmm...well, alright then. So what do we do until they decide we've had enough time to get to know each other?" She asked, flopping down on the ground gracelessly, stretching out on the grass and folding her hands over her stomach, staring up at the sky. He raised an eyebrow. Ohh no. Never in a million years had this woman ever been a noble. There was something that was just so remarkably...nonchalant about her. As if she didn't give two damns about what anyone thought of her. Admirable, but hardly noble. He sat on a bench nearby, seeing no reason to ruin his clothes and give anyone the impression that they were doing anything that would have entailed rolling around in the grass. A topic to pass the time. Well, they were both shinigami. That would pass a little time, talking about their divisions, he supposed.

"You are fourth seat of the Seventh Division. How has your division fared lately? There was a recent graduation ceremony at the academy; did any of the new recruits find their way to the Seventh?" A moot question, the Seventh, while not as popular as some squads, had a good recruitment program, and tended to produce good, hardworking shinigami. Then again, the best way to get a person talking was to ask them about themselves. Apparently, that had been the exact right question to ask, because her face lit up and she grinned brightly, sitting up on the ground and folding her legs, using her hands to gesticulate wildly.

"Ohh, it's great! We just had a good number of new recruits from the most recent Academy class, and I've been working with Konamura-taicho on a good "get your feet wet" training regimen for them! We think it'd be a great idea to give them a couple of weeks with Squad 4, give them a respect for the folks that keep their asses alive and hopefully pick up some good sustainability skills for combat medicine. Komamura-taicho is setting up a meeting with Zaraki-taicho to see if he wouldn't mind sparing someone for a few sessions with our new guys to give some pointers on swordsmanship, but knowing the 11th, we'll get Ikkaku, which would work out well, he's not nearly as likely to make the greenies faint as Zaraki-taicho!" And she was off and running, excitedly talking about the training ideas that she had, having been assigned to take the newbies in hand as she was the least intimidating of the seated officers.

He raised both eyebrows in surprise as the girl began to spout out thought after thought about recruits, training, and duties. He listened to every detail in silence, preferring to simply let her speak until she had paused, presumably for a breath. This was a much better conversation topic than polite small talk with noble women. "Joint training between Divisions. Amangai Shousuke had presented that idea to the Soutaicho during his... brief time as the Taicho of the Third Division. Many of the Captains opposed the idea, particularly Kurotsuchi-taicho and Soifon-taicho. Each Division is meant to have its' own strengths and purposes. Many Taichos felt that this should be preserved, or else it would bring into question why we have as many Divisions as we do."

"While that's a very good point, the fact is that we are all part of a fighting force meant to protect the human world and the spirit world. Why should our inability to cooperate and coordinate in battle make us less effective and this entire mentality be touted as a good thing? With all due respect to Soifon-taicho," she would absolutely never put Kurotsuchi's name and the word respect in the same sentence unless it was sarcasm, "the idea that becoming more aware of the strengths and tactics of fellow squads by training along side them is not only detrimental to the standing battle orders as a whole, it's pretty damned stupid. I mean, just look at the Winter War! Combat viability was dramatically reduced because instead of fighting as cohesive units, everyone tried to be a goddamned hero and people got busted up pretty badly that should have had better backup and more knowledgeable support." It probably wasn't the best idea to be slamming a captain's opinion, but she'd always had her differences with Soifon, mainly due to the sheer bitchiness the woman regarded everyone else with. Honestly, she should check herself in to the fourth division right away before that tree trunk up her ass got infected.

His head tilted to one side. He hadn't been present in Karakura for the actual war, he had been sent to rescue the suicidal idiot that was Kurosaki after the boy charged into Hueco Mundo like some Don Quixote impersonator. The trials that he had faced personally within the walls of Hueco Mundo weren't anything that he would even have thought mentioning. The Espada he had encountered had been pathetic, and it still puzzled him how the rest of the Captains had had so much trouble with them at the time. "Inter-divisional training wouldn't have been of any use during the Winter War. The opponents were all of a level that dwarfed even that of the Fukutaichos. It was purely a battle of Taichos. Committing the rank and file to such a battle would have resulted in an astronomical, and unnecessary casualty count. To make matters worse, half of the Taichos were forced into Hueco Mundo to rescue the reckless child that inexplicably had the capability to counter Aizen. The Divisions as a whole were utterly pointless in the conflict."

"And that's precisely the point I'm making. Individual shinigami, yes. Pointless in battles against Espada, yes. But what about the living world, or even Rukongai or those of us that were here in Soul Society guarding against the hollows that were swarming the districts during that whole fight with Aizen? Some were pretty damned powerful, and our squads were ridiculously unprepared to deal with that! You had 11th division fighters jumping in front of the kido corps, friendly fire actually resulted more injuries than the hollows, and there was zero combat viability. Not to mention there were kids, human living souls, out there trying to fight Aizen when he showed up in Karakura! I mean, I give them props for sheer balls of steel, but seriously!" She shoved her hand through her hair, knocking some of the pins loose, and he couldn't help but smile inwardly. She might be ridiculous as a noble, but she was smart, and passionate about her work. Surprisingly enough, she was actually rather attractive with her hair mussed, eyes flashing and bristling like a little porcupine. His face betrayed none of those thoughts as she continued railing. "While the captains and all were out in Hueco Mundo blasting the shit outta things, we were left here with no standing order as to how to function as a team, and that's utterly unacceptable. If Soifon-taicho thinks that the lower ranks of shinigami are so pointless as to put no effort into making them a respectable fighting force too, then let her stay behind next time some bad ass threat to the rest of the world happens and she can babysit Rukongai and the human world!"

His brow furrowed, raising an eyebrow. She certainly did have strong opinions, didn't she? "Soifon-tiacho is known to have the most grueling and difficult training of any squad short of the First. If there were complications that arose during the mere hours it took for the battle to run its' course, then the fault falls upon the seated officers for being unprepared to manage their soldiers. The Fifth Division, for example, ran extremely well without both its' Taicho and Fukutaicho for over a year. Third Seat Doji had apparently stepped up and taken control in their absence. The chaos during the two ryoka incidents was also a result of poor management on behalf of the leadership. Each Division should have specific areas to defend, and that has largely been resolved." He closed his eyes briefly, settling back onto the bench. "The children you spoke of are a situation that should not have occurred. They were all placed under the effects of a kido that should have rendered them soundly asleep for the duration. The fact that they woke up is a direct result of letting the Kurosaki boy roam free in the World of the Living."

"Well, regardless of what was supposed to happen, well...the best laid plans of mice and men y'know? And we're horribly unprepared for when that happens." She folded her arms obstinately. "Doji-san and the others did the best they could, but it could be so much better. And while Soifon-taicho has a very grueling training regimen, it does absolutely nothing to teach her division how to work with other divisions. Imagine if soldiers in ancient Sparta broke ranks and just started running all over like chickens with their heads cut off, with no thought at all to the tactics and abilities of their fellow soldiers? Imagine the Roman Empire without the phalanx battle structure. Imagine World War 1 and 2 if the soldiers in those battalions functioned like ours do? It doesn't work. The system as it is right now relies too much on the captains and lieutenants, and the big flashy pretty attacks they do that basically wreck the world. Which is fine for one on one combat with people of similar power levels. But for god's sake, what about the rest of us? Are we Shinigami just because the sword is nice, the outfits are comfy and we get a discount at the noodle shop? Really?"

He sighed audibly and shook his head. "You are not intended for large scale battles. Every time it has happened, it has been the result of some arrogant fool deciding to raise their own army to incite a rebellion. The general shinigami is meant for small scale conflict against an individual hollow, or small group of hollows. Every single one of them is capable of defeating the average hollow and performing konsos. In large scale conflict, it is the responsibility of the officers to direct their soldiers as they're supposed to. You do not honestly believe that infantry units in the World of the Living had any knowledge of the movements or tactics employed by the cavalry divisions, do you? No. It was always the responsibility of the General to direct the pieces on the battlefield, issuing commands that get passed down through the ranks. Each unit only needs to be aware of their own responsibility. Being capable of more than that is how one gets promoted into the officer ranks." The discussion was surprisingly more invigorating than he had anticipated, and he actually found himself enjoying her conversation. She held a different stance than he did, and naturally he thought he was right, or he wouldn't have the position that he did. But she made good points and defended her position well, and for that he had to respect her. An odd thing for him to say, considering how their meeting had started. He didn't let this show in his tone or face; that was half the fun of the debate, watching her react to his seeming indifference.

She frowned a little and glared at him, feeling rather that he was dismissing her out of hand and more than a little irritated by this. "No, I'm not saying that soldiers in the world of the living know what their generals are planning. But the soldiers DO train and run exercises together, which I think would be very helpful. And no, having a full scale war shouldn't happen, but it does. And we are left totally unprepared for it. Yes, they're just as unprepared, but having two morons with pencils fighting each other still isn't pretty, even if they ARE both morons! The point is that it wouldn't hurt anything, and would actually help quite a bit, especially given that we have seen how very wrong it can go, to have more inter-squad collaboration."

He shook his head again. "The chaos you keep referring to was a result of the arrogance created within the ranks of the Taichos combined with the poorly defined boundaries for full scale patrols. It was precisely what Aizen had desired, and that was why he pulled the strings and manipulated the rest of us as he had. Having three Divisions intentionally working against the other ten was the problem." He looked at her patiently, noticing the slightly irritated, faintly petulant expression on her face. She had a point, but he couldn't foresee another situation in which a megalomanaical genius with a God complex would be able to set a plan to overthrow the very foundation of their society, spanning decades as he tweaked and re-tweaked his plans. Then again, they certainly hadn't expected it the first time. "The patrols should have been handled entirely by the Onmitsukidou. It is the reason the Patrol Corps exists. Divisions were normally set on standby and made to defend their own grounds. Your purpose is to protect the souls of the living from the average, mindless hollow. Each of the standard Divisions, the Third, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Ninth, Tenth, and Thirteenth are all assigned areas within the World of the Living that they are responsible for protecting. The average shinigami is each given a small area to patrol for hollow activity for a few months at a time. You move from patrolling, to training, to back to patrolling. No large scale conflict has ever needed the rank and file to complete it. They are the no more than an extension of the bodies of the leadership, covering tens of thousand of kilometers of area at once." Once again, he glanced in her direction. "Joint combat is unnecessary, and in the most likely event, will result in crippling one or more of the soldiers. Imagine if you built a unit with a various combat skills in the World of the Living... Infantry, Cavalry, Armored units, and then you have multiple individuals with wide-scale destructive power. Why waste the manpower and the lives of the other units, when you can simply destroy all of the enemies with a single attack? The Eleventh and Second divisions exist solely for this reason. They are our combat specialists. They're the forces that have to learn to work in tandem with one another and work in groups." He leaned forward on the bench slightly, enjoying the way that even through that ridiculous makeup, he could see her cheeks flushing.

"Well that's wonderful in a perfect world." She spat, eyes flashing. "However, the last time I checked, even Soul Society wasn't a perfect world, and while yes, it would be very nice to be able to simply pop one of those Second or Eleventh division fighters over any time you run into something that you're not able to handle on your own, it's not practical. Hence why I think that a basic understanding of other division's tactics would be beneficial. Not every person that uses healing kido is in the Fourth, and not every person who's good at binding or destruction is in the Kido Corps. Those are understood to be skills that every shinigami should have. Why is combat and stealth any different? Why wouldn't it benefit shinigami of all divisions to be given rudimentary field experience in areas of other division's expertise, if only to make them better at their apparently undervalued positions?"

The nobleman simply shook his head. "Because that is not their job. If someone wished to have such training, they would have joined the other divisions. Squad transfers are not uncommon. You may be aware that my own fukutaicho has transferred more than once before achieving his present rank. Kira-fukutaicho was a member of the Fourth before he became the fukutaicho of the Third. If someone truly desires other skills, they have to option to learn them. If an officer has such skills and wishes to teach their Division, that is their decision. I, for one, teach my Division about kido and when it's appropriate to use. It is the choice of each taicho how to conduct their squad. If Unohana-taicho or Zaraki-taicho are interested in assisting you, then they is their decision to make."

She frowned, folding her arms obstinately and grumbled. "Apparently moving out of the feudal era is impossible around here. Unohana-taicho thought it was a great idea. So did Komamura-taicho. I don't see why everyone else is so rigidly stuck in their ways. I mean, did progress become a four letter word or something while I wasn't looking?" She sighed a little, sliding her fingers through her hair again, knocking more pins to the ground, and smearing her makeup a little, revealing rosy pink skin under the porcelain pale makeup favored by many nobles these days. He felt a slight twinge of pity for the girl; she was obviously in over her head, and the nobles that she was now finding herself having to deal with had no use for those that didn't conform to their rigid ideals. Having met the girl, he didn't think there was much she was capable of conforming to. How foolish for the clan elders to have arranged a meeting between the two of them! At least she was interesting to talk to and wasn't trying to seduce or trick him into marrying her. It's a shame that the next noble woman they try to foist off on him wouldn't be so agreeable...

Wait...

That wasn't a half-bad idea...

His expression never changed, but a particularly diabolical plan was hatching in his brain. If he played this right, and she was amenable, then he didn't have to deal with any other bird brained noblewomen being shoved off on him. All they had to do was be rumored to be a couple, and that would end any other clan's attempt to insinuate themselves into the Kuchiki clan by way of marriage. It wouldn't work forever of course, but he could at least get some breathing room. Preferably breathing room that didn't include the horrible perfume that most of those women wore. Hisana had always smelled of flowers and rain... No, he was letting his melancholy get the better of him. It was time to put a plan into action. And the girl looked miserable enough in her outfit to make it nearly a sure bet. He didn't smile; that would give too much away. Everyone seemed to assume the worst when he smiled. "Perhaps you would be more comfortable in your shihakusho. If you'd like, we could go let you change, then you could come view the Sixth Division's training area. Abari-fukutaicho should still be running them through drills for the next two hours." He waited to see if she would take the bait. He wasn't disappointed.

Her face was incredibly expressive; the mere mention of her being back in her comfy uniform and not this ridiculous monkey suit was enough to make her glow with pure pleasure. "That'd be amazingly awesome! I can't stand these get ups! Last time I wore one of these things was for a festival in school." She grinned a little sheepishly. "Hey but you know you don't need to hang out with me and all if you've got other stuff to do. We can just go ahead and tell them that we'd be the most ridiculous couple in the history of Rukongai."

A small smile pulled onto his face for the briefest of moments, unable to contain it. She would be amenable, he was certain of it. "I can understand that. Fortunately, my position as Taicho allows me to remain in uniform at all times. As far as our suitability or unsuitability as it were, perhaps we don't need to inform the elders just yet. You could accompany me to the Sixth Division training grounds and offer your opinion of our training regimen. I felt that since you were so interested in inter-divisional training, you may be interested in seeing the way the Sixth trains. If you would rather return to your duties, however, I will not stop you."

Her one eyebrow joined her other eyebrow somewhere near her hairline and she grinned brightly, her mouth wide and generous, almost too big for her face. She wasn't exactly a classical beauty, but there was something about her that drew the eye to her, made a person want to look at her again. It wasn't beauty exactly...it was different than that. He couldn't define it, but it was pleasant. "And here I thought you figured my inter-divisional idea was crap! Lemme go wash this junk off my face and grab my uniform and I'll meet you there if you want! It won't take but a few minutes."

He slowly and gracefully got up onto his feet. "I did not reject your idea. I simply stated what was said in the captain's meeting when the idea was debated. I believe that it is an unnecessary measure to make officers go out of their way to train another Divisions members in skills they do not need. If an officer wishes to sit in and learn, then pass down that knowledge to their members, I see nothing wrong with it." Gesturing forward to allow her to proceed before him, he looked over to her. "I shall accompany you to your barracks. You are proficient in shunpo, I assume." She was a fourth seat after all, she should have some skill. She didn't seem to possess even a modicum of grace or finesse though, so he wondered if perhaps she wasn't very skilled at it. Well, it should at least make the trip back interesting.

Where his rise was slow and graceful, hers was more in the fashion of a jack in the box. She was up and on her feet and heading for the courtyard gate almost before he gestured, practically vibrating with excitement. Maybe it would be a good compromise, if any of the other officers of the seventh wanted to do what she was doing, or maybe officers of other divisions that had similar ideas. "I doubt I'd even be able to think about keeping up with you without laughing myself into hysterics, but I can at least get around."

He smiled again as he flashed to the doorway ahead of her, fast enough that it was beyond her perception. Taking the handle, he pulled the door open, waiting for her to go through first. "I was not suggesting that you could defeat me, Fourth Seat Shineiki, merely testing your ability and working to improve. I spent many years chasing..." His eyes narrowed as he thought about... that woman. "...my own shunpo instructor around the estate."

She laughed a little and stepped through the door, shaking her head ruefully. "If I had to chase whoever it was that taught you around anywhere for any other reason than life or death, I'd have probably gone on a murderous rampage waaay long ago." She opened the door, her eyes going wide as she saw the elders of both clan milling around outside the door. Every eye turned to her, with both sets of elders looking wildly expectant. She felt vaguely like a deer in headlights, and wanted very, very much to turn, close the doors and hide from them for the next few years.

Fortunately, she didn't have to worry much about that, as Kuchiki-taicho was right behind her. One look at his face and she even shivered, knowing that look wasn't meant towards her, a fact that she was exceptionally grateful stepped around the door, his eyes narrowing to glare and the assembled elders of the two families. "If you are all done gawking like a group of children, we shall be taking our leave for now." The Kuchiki Elders all suddenly tinted color in embarrassment, bowing and apologizing for their rudeness to the Head of the Kuchiki Clan. "After you, Fourth Seat Shineiki."

That was epic. That was probably the coolest thing she had ever seen. Having met and dealt with her more nobly born and raised relatives, the fact that Kuchiki-taicho could just shut people like that up so easily was something akin to seeing him rip open his shihakusho and be wearing a gigantic S on his chest. She glanced back over her shoulder at him and grinned. "When I grow up, I want to be you." She said, laughing a little and then darting forward, figuring that when she was flash stepping with the fastest man in Soul Society, a head start wouldn't be really considered cheating.

He raised an eyebrow at her comment, watching as she rushed off through the small hallway and out the open area into the front courtyard and beyond. He suppressed a smirk as he took off after her, moving fast enough to catch up in the matter of a few seconds and quickly overtaking her. Staying a fair distance ahead of her, he slowed his pace down enough that she would have to push herself pretty hard if she wanted to keep pace. It was exactly how he had learned, and was exactly why he was the fastest entity in all of Soul Society. Still, if he could work this just right, he wouldn't have to worry about dealing with any more noblewomen for a while. Then, once the elders were off the trail sufficiently, there would be a quiet parting of ways. He wouldn't have to worry about her trying for more with him; he doubted she had any inkling of a desire to be his wife. It would have been a bit insulting if not for having met the girl herself and seeing just how ill-suited to nobility she was.

Yes. This would work out well for everyone involved. Her clan would be happy, his clan would be happy, he didn't have to deal with an absolute birdbrain and she...well, were she anyone else, he'd say that she had the pleasure of being seen on his arm and in his company. He wasn't really sure what she would get out of it, but she didn't seem to be bothered by the prospect of being around him. He would see what he could do to show his appreciation for her assistance with this. Suddenly things didn't seem nearly as dreary. This could even be downright entertaining.

What a difference the perfect woman...or in this case, the absolutely imperfect woman... made.

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><p>Hope you enjoyed! Reviews are much appreciated; I like to know what works and what doesn't. Thanks for reading!<p> 


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